Future Me

With some "issue plays"
you can argue that the hot-button topic the script deals with isn't
really what it's about. Not so
with UK playwright Stephen Brown's Future Me, which is very much about
whether a convicted pedophile can move on and build a productive life. In Dylan
Russell's tense staging for the TheatreFIRST
US premiere, Dana Jepsen plays Peter, whose life
falls apart when he accidentally emails kiddie porn
to everyone he knows. Jepsen conveys a
palpable sense of effort toward normal human interaction while haunted by his
past. Dana Kelly as prison buddy Harry is a friendly bloke for a serial
molester, but he's also constantly squinting with indecision and an obvious
risk of recidivism. Peter Ruocco is especially
chilling as Tim, a self-styled pedophilia evangelist who counsels his fellow nonces to resist brainwashing. Through May 4 at BerkeleyCity Club (2315 Durant Ave., Berkeley).TheatreFIRST.com or 510-436-5085.